January 18 - January 24

1/18, Sunday - 2nd Flatiron, 1st Flatiron, Green Mtn, West Bench - 6 miles, 3,300', 2:41
Starting from Chautauqua I warmed up with a mellow scramble of Freeway on the 2nd before heading over to the 1st. The base was covered in snow so I skirted around on the 1st Flatironette and the Spy before hopping on the North Arete. Summitting Green I tried hopping around someone on the snowy summit block, lost my slick footing and cut up my thumb. Sort of a bummer because I was hoping to explore some climbing routes in the Amphitheater. I ended up getting to the top of the West Bench and downclimbing "West Bench Direct", 5.2. So in essence I can onsite downclimb 5.2 but I fall on class 2+. Great.

I got around to watching "Valley Uprising" this evening; I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys being in nature. Besides the obvious story-line of climbing lore in Yosemite, it delves into various ideologies and approaches to climbing that I myself frequently contemplate. Given my novice qualifications as a climber - we'll just say scrambler how about - these ethics seem to apply to all outdoor recreations. The quote that resonated with me was "the summit is nothing, how you get there is everything. Beyond a pseudo-philosophical experience there is some phenomenal climbing that simply must be seen to believe.

1/19, Monday - AM: Amphitheater Exploration PM: BRC
After some investigation, I determined that fingers just bleed a lot and my thumb was generally fine. I played around in the Amphitheater enjoying some 5.4 crack climbs. Totally different technique than shimmying up slabs. Afterwards some friends and I went to Boulder Rock Club to test our mettle above 5.4. I really enjoyed it and am planning on getting a membership to a gym to work on my technical work in a safe environment.

1/20, Tuesday - AM: Green/Flagstaff trails - 10 miles, 2,400', 2:09 - PM: Creek - 5 miles, 170', 0:45
I hadn't run with Kory since freshman year when he dragged me up Boulder Canyon at his "conversational" pace - the pace was not so easy for me. We joined his friend Jack for a run up most of Flagstaff and Green but summiting neither (!?!?!?). I suppose they don't have the same summit fever I do, so kudos to them for being fine with whatever. On the other hand, I care (arguably too much) about standing on the top. That's just how it is.

Sort of a funny story, when I got back home I was in the mindset that it was Monday and class started at 12. Of course, it was really Tuesday (MLK day off), so at about 10:30 I jumped into action. Unfortunately at about 10:25 the toilet had clogged and overflown so the bathroom was shut down. Being covered in sweat and mud I was in no condition to go to class. I flew out the door to the rec center a mile away on my bike at 10:40. On the hill to the rec I then found my tires to be about 50% deflated, making my already fatigued tired legs work even harder! Somehow I managed to race through the morning's tasks and was sitting in class at 10:55.

1/21, Wednesday - Green Mtn 10 miles, 3,000', 2:40
Oh boy, this was a hard one. I was feeling a little under the weather, the trails were ice emblazoned with a dusting of powder on top - and I was just downright tired. Naturally, I chose the iciest and steepest line up, which I floundered up in what should be my slowest time ever. Hiked almost everything uphill that was non-road. Just get it done.

1/22, Thursday - Off
Full on sick today. Hadn't taken a day off since Christmas, so it was well warranted.

1/23, Friday - Off
Still sick.

1/24, Saturday - 2nd Flatiron + Green Mtn - 5 miles, 2,600', 1:45
After the sickness, I played it safe distance wise and drove to Chatauqua. Tackled an extra spicy scramble up the Freeway which ended up still having a solid helping of snow on the upper ramparts. I almost turned around after the scramble, but the sickness was seemingly less and less apparent as time went on, so up to Green I went. Great snowpack up top led to snatching another couple Strava CR's on the Greenman/Saddle-Rock descent route. At 18:40 I still think a couple minutes could get knocked off. Hopefully, this illness is meeting its demise today.

Week Totals:
38 miles
12,500'
15:32 time on feet

2 completely off days, 3 days with zero running (still got some good exercise climbing on Monday though); definitely a so-so week in terms of miles, vert and summits. Such is what happens with sickness.